JEDDAH, 18 December 2003 — Investigations by Interior Ministry officials have revealed that the terrorists who bombed the Al-Muhaya Compound in Riyadh used cars painted to look like police cars. This made it easy for them to carry out their operations, Al-Madinah newspaper reported. Earlier this month, a terrorist operation was foiled because of a car painted to look like a military vehicle.
In addition to cars that look like military or police vehicles, it is possible that terrorists could buy and wear police uniforms because they are readily available in certain tailor shops throughout the Kingdom.
These shops make uniforms for the military — army, police, Passports Department and the National Guard. Samples of all these uniforms are displayed in the shops. The shop owners say that they never sell a uniform without asking to see a military ID. Al-Madinah newspaper’s reporter set out to discover whether that was indeed the case.
He went to one of the shops and asked for a uniform. The Asian worker did not check any ID but instead, took the man’s measurements. The reporter even asked the tailor if he wanted to see a military ID but the tailor said there was no need to do so. The reporter then put on the uniform and went out into the streets where he asked people for their identification.
No one seemed to be aware that the man in the uniform was a journalist rather than a policeman. Both the newspaper and the reporter are seeking to draw attention to the lack of control in the special tailor shops.
Al-Madinah met with owners of several military uniform shops. Faleh Al-Harthi, the owner of one, said: “Since I went into this business, I have followed the regulations. We refuse to issue a new uniform to anyone without a permit. We are under the supervision of the police department which conducts surprise visits to see whether we are following regulations or not. We ask for identification before we sell a uniform. If the person does not have an ID, then we ask for an official letter stating that he is entitled to one.”
The reporter went to another shop where an expat tailor was working. He asked the tailor to take his measurements which was done. When the reporter inquired why the tailor did not ask for a military ID, the tailor answered that many shops do not care about IDs and that their concern is making money as fast as possible.
Yousif Hassan, a Saudi, said: “I bought some military pants to use when I go hunting. Believe me, it was very easy; nobody asked me for any military identification. The police really should do something about this situation since terrorists can easily take advantage of the lack of supervision. They can easily acquire official uniforms and even paint their cars to look like police or military vehicles.”
